M J Nolan (Carlow-Kilkenny, Fianna Fail)

What was broadcast on national television last night was a scenario that is unacceptable to the Government, Departments and nursing home organisations in general. I suspect what we saw depicted on our screens last night is not common throughout the country. If the programme has done one thing for us, it has provided a wake-up call. It is a wake-up call to the authorities, the nursing home organisations and the public that we must be more vigilant. It is also a wake-up call for politicians. It has taken a programme such as the "Prime Time" special last night to outline what is going on in the country. We should have standards which are up to those the Department and the new Health Service Executive consider should be implemented.

What was shown on the programme are the shortcomings in our system. If we do nothing else, it is time we introduced legislation or regulations to shore up these shortcomings. The Minister of State, in his contribution to "Morning Ireland" this morning outlined the Government's position on the "Prime Time" programme.

There are hundreds of private nursing homes throughout the country and I am sure they were not very pleased by what they saw in a member home of their professional group as depicted in the programme. I am glad that news reports today outline that the organisation that represents nursing homes does not defend in any way what became evident last night. A number of people told me today that they could not watch and had to turn off their televisions because what was shown was so horrific. Anybody who has had to look after an elderly relation, family member of close friend has had that person's well-being at heart.

In a society where in many cases both couples must work, more of our elderly population will be put into the care of nursing homes whether private or public. An international report suggests that only 5% of the elderly go into nursing care. However, with an increasing number of people living longer, we will see an increased percentage in nursing homes. It is timely of the Minister to state that the Government is bringing forward legislation to cover some of the matters shown on last night's television programme.

We should not overlook the role of the Department of Social and Family Affairs in care of the elderly. Successive Governments have acknowledged the role carers play in their care. In the past few weeks the Minister for Social and Family Affairs outlined a major increase in respite grants for individuals who look after elderly people in their homes. This is an area the Government should examine. It should put more resources into funding carers who save the State incredible amounts of money by looking after elderly people at home. The elderly would prefer to be catered for in their homes rather than being sent to nursing homes, be they public or private.

The assistance given by carers is welcome and we will see more scope for assistance in this health area. The standard of care given by carers is extremely high and, from a Government point of view, is certainly value for money. Last night we saw that individuals pay up to €40,000 per year to have their relations kept in private nursing homes. We could keep our elderly in their home environment for far less than that.

The Minister must insist on random inspections for all nursing homes. I think we will see a shake-up in the quality and standards applied by nursing homes as a result of last night's programme. It is not right to give nursing homes advance warning of an inspection as it defeats the purpose of random inspections for the homes to be told they will be inspected at a particular time on a particular day. It is not good enough to say that the reason some homes are given advance notice is that they want the owner or matron to be there. If we have standards for nursing homes, the homes should be available for inspection on a 24-hour, seven days a week basis. I think that will happen.

The number of private nursing homes constructed in the past five or six years is substantial. Developers and entrepreneurs have seen this area as a profitable source of income. Nursing homes are more than just a business. If business people want to get involved in nursing homes, that is all very well, but they must employ professional health care people with an experienced background in the nursing home sector. They must employ professional nurses and administrators and suitably qualified matrons who have a working knowledge of how to deal with and care for the elderly.

It is not acceptable that foreign nurses and assistants are employed as carers in nursing homes to the extent outlined last night. Our elderly would not be familiar with non-nationals and foreign carers and would not have had much exposure to them during their lives. It is unfair to have them looked after by foreign nurses. I do not mean to criticise the standards or qualifications of overseas nurses, but there should be a quota system with regard to the number caring for elderly patients.

As a result of the pressure on couples to work because of high mortgages and the high cost of housing, fewer families, individuals and couples are in a position to look after their elderly patients or relations in the home.

See this speech in context